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Next week, hundreds of companies will besiege Orlando, Fla., at CTIA Wireless 2002—each there to prove that their technologies take the best possible advantage of the airwaves. The products on display will range from telecom switches to wireless pens, and seminars will focus on making a case for the necessity of next generation wireless wide-area and local-area networks.
Among the companies announcing new wares and partnerships:
ArrayComm Inc. will announce that it is developing baseband ASICs that will bring the companys I-BURST broadband wireless Internet access systems to mobile devices. I-Burst, a “smart antenna” technology that will compete against other third-generation wireless networks, is expected to launch in trials in the second half of this year, but the company is depending on a carrier to buy new spectrum before the technology can be widely deployed in the United States.
Verizon Wireless will announce the availability of its BREW service, meaning that customers now can wirelessly download applications to their phones via Qualcomm Inc.s BREW platform.
Price Waterhouse Coopers business unit PwC Consulting will announce the New World Networks Mobile IP Solution, an operations and business support system that addresses converged voice/data services from the back end to make sure that the way carriers pitch a service is the way it appears on the bill. The software supports location-based services for inventory applications, and also makes it easier for a carrier to bill by the amount of content a customer is accessing.
“A lot of tier-one telcos are being flexible on the CRM front, but now they need to be flexible on the billing front,” said Michael Reuschel, a managing partner at PwC in Chicago, “If Im striking a deal to sell you voice and data services, and then you get a bill that doesnt look anything like what we negotiated, then youre going to be mad.”
In addition, Handspring Inc. and Palm Inc. both will be providing additional details about e-mail services for their new wireless devices, the Treo and the i705, respectively.
Meanwhile, Amdocs Ltd. at the show will be touting converged voice/billing systems and will announce that its Amdocs Enabler product now supports pre-pay, making it easier for carriers to charge for some services before the customer actually uses them. Amdocs serves Sprint PCS and Cingular Wireless, among other carriers.
Siemens AG will be introducing two new GSM phones and will be demonstrating next generation base stations that support EDGE (Enhanced Data Rates for Global Evolution).
Emblaze Networks Inc. will introduce several new products that focus on streaming video to cell phones.
SignalSoft Corp. will be demonstrating nine location-based services in its booth, which will be designed to look like a city block. Navigation Technologies Inc. also will be introducing new location-based services, as will veteran player Cambridge Positioning Systems.
Nextel Communications Inc. will announce a partnership with RadioFrame Networks Inc. to offer services that improve in-building wireless coverage. Nextel also will be introducing several color-screen phones from Motorola Corp. that support Java.
DataOnAir Inc., which formerly offered only hosted services, will be introducing several standalone software applications for carriers. The ProPlatform family of products includes software that enables carriers to offer wireless data services on a pre-pay basis; a subscriber tracking system; and various subscriber provisioning and personalization tools.


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India lifts ban on bulk export of major edible oils
India meets 60-70% of its domestic edible oil demand through imports.business Updated: Mar 27, 2017 19:56 IST
India on Monday lifted ban on bulk exports of certain edible oils, including groundnut, sesame and soyabean, with a view to boosting shipments and promoting domestic processing industry.
Interestingly, India meets 60-70% of its domestic edible oil demand through imports.
The country imported about 14.5 million tonnes of vegetable oils (edible and non-edible) during 2015-16 oil year (November to October).
“Export of groundnut oil, sesame oil, soyabean oil and maize oil in bulk, irrespective of any pack size has been exempted from the prohibition on export of edible oil,” Directorate General of Foreign Trade said in a notification.
So far exports of edible oils were allowed in branded consumer packs of up to 5 kg.
First Published: Mar 27, 2017 19:55 IST

domain: news


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| Jul 22, 2013
| 2:30 PM
Taco Bell is discontinuing its kids' meals and toys at U.S. restaurants beginning this month, the Irvine-based Mexican-style chain said Monday.
The fast-food giant said it’s the first in the industry to undertake the effort, which it said will...
| Aug 21, 2013
| 8:01 AM
It’s only August, but retailers such as Wal-Mart and Toys R Us are already getting a jump on what is expected to be a difficult holiday season.
On Wednesday, discount giant Wal-Mart said it would bring back its layaway program this year after last...
| Oct 1, 2013
| 8:20 AM
Amazon.com Inc. said it will hire 70,000 full-time seasonal workers for the holiday rush, a 40% boost from last year.
The Seattle company, which runs the world’s largest e-commerce operation, said the fulfillment center employees will join the...
| Oct 16, 2013
| 9:01 AM
Mattel Inc., the nation’s largest toy company, and Barbie, likely its best-known product, are heading into Christmas looking up.
The El Segundo-based company reported net income of $422.8 million, or $1.21 a share, for the third quarter, which...
| Nov 2, 2013
| 2:31 PM
A favorite won the second Breeders' Cup race in a row as Groupie Doll was a repeat winner of the $1-million Filly and Mare Sprint on Saturday at Santa Anita.
The 5-year-old mare took the lead on the far turn, extended it to two lengths entering the...
| Nov 28, 2013
| 8:08 PM
In the early evening, in the thick of Thanksgiving dinnertime, another round of retailers opened their doors to deal-hunting shoppers.
Toys R Us began welcoming customers at 5 p.m. At the store in Bell Gardens, Cathleen Leal, 35, had been waiting...
| Dec 21, 2013
| 2:13 PM
The parking lot was crowded. Streams of shoppers flowed around the Santa’s House erected in the middle of the center. Shoppers laden with bags jostled each other in long lines stretching from cashiers.
It’s "Super Saturday" at the Grove...
| Nov 11, 2013
| 10:11 AM
At this rate, shoppers hoping to get in on "Black Friday" deals will have to eat their turkey for lunch, as both Target and Toys R Us announced plans to open Thanksgiving evening.
In its earliest opening ever, Target said it will welcome bargain hunters...
| Sep 12, 2013
| 9:40 AM
Consider the holiday retail race to be in full swing, as both Wal-Mart and Toys R Us moved early Thursday to stake a claim in the competitive toy market.
Discount behemoth Wal-Mart, which says it’s the largest toy seller in the nation, unveiled...
| Nov 8, 2013
| 9:52 AM
Showrooming: It’s a retail phenomenon that brick-and-mortar chains have hustled to shut down, in which shoppers check out products in person before buying them online at a discount.
It’s a tactic that 100% of consumers have used at least...
| Dec 3, 2013
| 4:59 PM
The parent company of Toys R Us and Babies R Us agreed to pay nearly $180,000 to settle a lawsuit alleging that the retailers overcharged Southland shoppers, according to the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office.
The Wayne, N.J., business...


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Splinter Cell's Creative Director Returned to Ubisoft
Adrian Werner, 21 January 2020, 12:19
Maxime Beland, creative director who led the teams responsible for Splinter Cell: Conviction and Splinter Cell: Blacklist, returned to Ubisoft. Fans hope that this will increase the chances for the next installment of the cycle.
Ubisoft Suing for DDoS Attacks in Rainbow Six Siege
Jacob Blazewicz, 20 January 2020, 21:37
Ubisoft has filed a lawsuit against ShortNameGame in connection with DDoS attacks on Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege servers. The defendants were said to provide, for a fee, the software needed to carry out the attacks, as well as mock the company's actions aimed at limiting their effects.
Ubisoft Will do its Best to Deliver More Unique Games in the Future
Konrad Serafinski, 18 January 2020, 21:30
Ubisoft plans to restructure and expand the team responsible for content and art direction of its games. The move is aimed at diversification of studio's portfolio and is a response to the company's poor commercial results from last year.
New Map for Rainbow Six Siege Gives Access to All Operators
Jacob Blazewicz, 16 January 2020, 22:36
The Road to S.I. 2020 event has just begun in Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Siege. The event will enable the players to access all operators for free on a special map for a limited time.
Might and Magic Chess Royale - Release Date of Ubisoft's Rival for TFT
Adrian Werner, 14 January 2020, 10:58
Ubisoft has announced that Might & Magic: Chess Royale will be released at the end of January, an online strategy that will combine mechanics of auto battlers like Dota Auto Chess or Teamfight Tactics with elements of the battle royale genre.
New Assassin's Creed is Not Ragnarok; Rumors Claimed False
Bart Swiatek, 13 January 2020, 11:49
Daniel Ahmad, an analyst from Niko Partners, who has many contacts in the industry and has repeatedly revealed information about upcoming titles, stated in a forum post that the next installment of the Assassin's Creed series is not AC: Ragnarok. Everything seems to indicate that the rumors about the game are not true.
Assassin's Creed Ragnarok - New Leak Reveals Great Deal of Details
Bart Swiatek, 09 January 2020, 20:40
New rumors about the new installment of the Assassin's Creed series have surfaced on the web. This time they concern both the plot and gameplay mechanics of AC Ragnarok. The number of details that have been revealed is really big.
Rumor: New Installment of Prince of Persia is Called Dark Babylon
Milosz Szubert, 09 January 2020, 15:07
There was an alleged leak on Reddit, concerning the new installment of the Prince of Persia series. It is to be subtitled Dark Babylon and be a direct continuation of the Sands of Time trilogyThe game is to be announced in February and launch in 2021.
Assassin's Creed Ragnarok Valhalla Edition Found on Amazon.de
Adrian Werner, 08 January 2020, 12:47
A special Valhalla edition of Assassin's Creed Ragnarok appeared for a while in the German branch of Amazon. This is another reason to believe that the next installment of Ubisoft's franchise will take us to the Viking age.
Assassin's Creed and Thor's Hammer - New Rumors on AC Ragnarok
Darius Matusiak, 04 January 2020, 21:28
Assassin's Creed: Ragnarok with Thor's hammer? A new batch of rumors about the latest installment of the series from Ubisoft has appeared online.
Ubisoft Montreal Cancels a Secret Project After 3 Years of Production
Konrad Serafinski, 21 December 2019, 20:24
Ubisoft Montreal cancelled a large unannounced project that it had worked on for three years. The information comes from the studio's programmer, who was involved in the game and shared his thoughts on Twitter.
Rainbow Six Siege Gets New Dev Team
Bart Swiatek, 19 December 2019, 13:49
Ubisoft announced that Rainbow Six: Siege will be developed by a new team, led by game director Leroy Athanassoff. Some of the original creators, including Xavier Marquis and Alexandre Remy, will now be working on new projects for the French company.
Free Week With Anno 1800 Launches Tomorrow
Bart Swiatek, 10 December 2019, 14:05
Tomorrow, on December 11, a free week in Anno 1800, the strategy game from the French company Ubisoft. Players will be able to check the title to a limited extent, we will be unable to access its entire content. However, the promotion will enable us to test the co-op mode, which will be added in today's update 6.0.
AC Rogue Character Plays Important Role in Assassin's Creed Ragnarok?
Bart Swiatek, 03 December 2019, 14:18
GameRant journalists have analyzed a number of clues that suggest that an important, perhaps even the main, role in the next part of the Assassin's Creed series may be played by a character known from one of the previous installments, but also a DLC for AC Odyssey. We're talking about the Master Templar Otso Berg.
Ubisoft's New Avatar Game From The Division 2 Devs Still in Works
Michael Kulakowski, 02 December 2019, 22:17
The official Twitter profile of the Avatar franchise confirmed that the new open-world game based on the film trilogy is still being developed. The title, created by Massive Entertainment and Ubisoft, will be available no sooner than 2021.
Watch Evolution of Assassin's Creed in 4K
Bart Swiatek, 29 November 2019, 12:41
YouTube featured a video showing the evolution of Assassin's Creed, the popular series of acton adventure games from Ubisoft. It shows the progress that has been made in the last 11 years in the area of visuals, as well as the changes that have taken place in the gameplay.
Assassin's Creed Ragnarok New Leaks Emerge - Setting, Locations, Quests And Heroes
Paul Wozniak, 23 November 2019, 16:56
New leaks about the next installment of Assassin's Creed have just appeared over the Internet. Sources say that the game will be set in early 11th century and may involve the story of Vikings conquering British Isles.
Assassin's Creed Ragnarok to be Revealed in February?
Adrian Werner, 21 November 2019, 11:43
Rumors that the next installment of Ubisoft's most popular series will be Assassin's Creed Ragnarok have resurfaced. The game is to be revealed in February next year, and its action will take us back to the Viking age.
Assassin's Creed 2020 is to Offer „a Unity Within an Odyssey”
Bart Swiatek, 13 November 2019, 13:41
In an interview with the editors of Gamesindustry.biz, Ubisoft's president Yves Guillemot revealed that the new installment of Assassin's Creed will try to combine the concepts known from Odyssey and Unity - we will get a vast open world in which we will find numerous and more focused stories.
Ubisoft Plans: Cross-play in Every Game and Better Communication
Christian Pieniazek, 31 October 2019, 20:56
In order to avoid another commercial disaster, Ubisoft intends to better communicate to players what the the games it announces will actually be. In addition, by default each title is to be equipped with a cross-play function.
Watch Dogs: Legion and Rainbow Six Quarantine on PS5 and Xbox Scarlett
Paul Wozniak, 31 October 2019, 20:48
The CEO of Ubisoft announced yesterday that the productions that have recently been delayed to the next financial year will be released both on the current- and next-gen consoles. The games in question are three AAA titles - Watch Dogs: Legion, Gods & Monsters, Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Quarantine and two more unannounced titles.
Ghost Recon Breakpoint - Devs Reveal Plan to Fix the Game
Adrian Werner, 29 October 2019, 11:35
Ubisoft has revealed how it intends to save Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Breakpoint. There are plans not only for bug fixes and new content, but also for changes to the game's virtual economy, the addition of AI-controlled companions, new gameplay options, and most likely the survival hardcore mode.
New Assassin's Creed as a Launch Title for Next-gen Consoles?
Paul Wozniak, 26 October 2019, 23:57
According to the latest Ubisoft statements, in the next fiscal year, in addition to the already known productions, there will also be two unannounced AAA games that will be continuations to the studio's popular series. Both titles are to be adapted to next-gen consoles.
The Division 2 and Breakpoint Flop; Ubisoft Delays New Games
Paul Wozniak, 25 October 2019, 00:19
At a closed press conference, Ubisoft informed about the delay of the upcoming AAA titles, including Watch Dogs Legion. The reasons for this are the unsatisfactory sales results of Tom Clancy's The Division 2 and Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Breakpoint and the reduction of financial targets for this year.
Ubisoft Sues MizuSoft - Cheat Makers for Rainbow Six Siege
Christian Pieniazek, 24 October 2019, 23:54
Ubisoft has brough out the big guns against the owners of MizuSoft, a company that sells Rainbow Six Siege cheats. The publisher demands that they cease their activities and pay a large compensation.
Ubisoft Makes Cartoons Based on Watch Dogs and Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon
Jacob Blazewicz, 10 October 2019, 23:19
Animated series based on licenses of Rayman, Watch Dogs and the memorable Far Cry 3 expansion are Ubisoft's new project. The Hollywood Reporter was where the French publisher announced its plans to create its own multiverse on a small screen.
Division 2 - Episode 2 Without the Announced Raid
Adrian Werner, 10 October 2019, 11:31
This month will see the release of Episode 2 for Tom Clancy's The Division 2. Unfortunately, it will lack the promised raid. The creators have also announced a new free weekend.
Assassin's Creed: Legion Found in Store Offer - Another Fake?
Jacob Blazewicz, 09 October 2019, 23:12
Assassin's Creed: Legion appeared in the offer of the Austrian store gameware.at. This may confirm previous rumors and indicate the imminent reveal of a new instalment of the series, unless this is just another fake.
Rabbids Coding Available for Free
Jacob Blazewicz, 09 October 2019, 21:33
Ubisoft has released Rabbids Coding - a free educational game starring the eponymous Rabbids. The title is supposed to teach us the basics of programming in a simple and enjoyable way.
Ghost Recon Breakpoint - Reviews
Michael Kulakowski, 05 October 2019, 20:47
Reviews of Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Breakpoint, a shooter, which released this Friday has appeared on the web. Critics' notes oscillate around 60 percent on average. The title has, therefore, become one of the lowest-rated high-budget Ubisoft games in recent years.
Ghost Recon Breakpoint Launches; Non-cosmetic Microtransactions Gone
Adrian Werner, 04 October 2019, 11:23
Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Breakpoint made its debut on the market. Interestingly, the devs decided to remove microtransactions that speed up character progression from the game.
Learn Coding With Rabbids in a Free Game From Ubisoft
Bart Swiatek, 03 October 2019, 14:55
Ubisoft has announced an educational game titled Rabbids Coding, the goal of which will be to teach the player the basics of programming. The title will be available on Uplay in a few days.
Ubisoft Ends Support of Assassin's Creed Odyssey With Patch 1.5.1
Bebop, 02 October 2019, 18:13
Ubisoft will soon complete the development of Assassin's Creed Odyssey. The patch 1.5.1 that concludes the process will coincide with the first anniversary of the game's launch, so the French team has also prepared special birthday attractions.
Ghost Recon Breakpoint - 70 Minutes of Gameplay on PC in 4K
Adrian Werner, 01 October 2019, 14:44
A video showing the first 70 minutes of Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Breakpoint was released online. It was recorded on a PC version of the game and runs in Ultra settings and 4K resolution.
Remember, The Free Trial Period of Uplay+ Ends Today
Paul Wozniak, 30 September 2019, 14:12
Today ends the free trial period of the Uplay+, which allows you to check Ubisoft games at a price of $14.99 per month. Those of you who have taken advantage of the free month and do not want to renew your subscription must remember to cancel it today.
Assassin's Creed Franchise Sales Exceeded 140 Million Copies
Adrian Werner, 28 September 2019, 21:09
Ubisoft boasted that Assassin's Creed sales exceeded 140 million copies. We also got to know the results of other publisher's IP, such as Far Cry, Just Dance or Splinter Cell.
Open Beta of Ghost Recon Breakpoint Launches [Updated]
Konrad Serafinski, 26 September 2019, 21:09
Today, the open beta of Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Breakpoint has launched on PC, Xbox One and PlayStation 4. The tests will last until September 29. Gamers can play in single-player, cooperation or PvP modes.
Ghost Recon Breakpoint Devs Reveal Open Beta Trailer and Roadmap
Bart Swiatek, 25 September 2019, 12:31
Ubisoft presented a trailer for the open beta tests of Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Breakpoint. The developers also shared information about the planned post-release support for the title.
Ubisoft Cracks Down on DDoS Attacks in Rainbow Six: Siege
Barth Faryna, 19 September 2019, 11:11
Due to the recent wave of attacks on the servers of Rainbow Six: Siege, Ubisoft has decided to take drastic steps to remedy the problem. Everything is described in detail on the blog so that players know what to expect.
Ghost Recon: Breakpoint - Open-beta Announcement and Live Action Trailer
Michael Kulakowski, 18 September 2019, 22:52
Next week, an open-beta of Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Breakpoint will launch, enabling us to try out several missions of the story campaign, both solo and together with friends. Ubisoft has also released a new live action trailer of the title, starring the rapper Lil Wayne,.
Watch Dogs Legion With Six Times Larger Map Than AC Syndicate
Adrian Werner, 14 September 2019, 21:36
Thanks to unofficial fan computations we learned the map size in Watch Dogs: Legion. It turns out that London present in the game will be six times bigger than its version available in AC: Syndicate.
Ubisoft Won't Go Back to Making Smaller Games Like... AC Unity
Paul Wozniak, 11 September 2019, 21:30
Yves Guillemot, CEO of Ubisoft, said in an interview that the company no longer intends to develop games with stories lasting only for a dozen or so hours. Instead, it wants to focus on creating titles that enable for the experience of many such adventures in one game.
Assassin's Creed Odyssey Gets Discovery Tour Mode
Bart Swiatek, 11 September 2019, 11:25
Ubisoft has release the educational mode for Assassin's Creed: Odyssey, known as Discovery Tour: Ancient Greece. The add-on is free for the owners of the base version of the game, but the PC also has a paid standalone version.
AC: Odyssey - Final Episode of The Lost Tales of Greece is Available
Bebop, 10 September 2019, 20:54
Ubisoft reminds us of Assassin's Creed: The Odyssey on the occasion of the September update. Along with it, the final of the free series of quests called „The Lost Tales of Greece” and the educational Discovery Tour mode were added to the game, and the Myrmidon character pack is right on their heels.
Rainbow Six Siege With 50 Million Players
Michael Kulakowski, 06 September 2019, 23:08
The tactical co-op online shooter Rainbow Six Siege, which debuted in 2015, has achieved another success. Ubisoft announced that since its launch the title has attracted a total of more than 50 million players.
Ubisoft Almost Succeeds in Adding Anno 1800 to Uplay+ [Updated]
Adrian Werner, 06 September 2019, 12:56
Anno 1800 was added to the list of games available in the Uplay+ service, but only theoretically, because when gamers tried downloading the production, errors poped up.
Assassin's Creed: The Rebel Collection Announced on Switch
Bebop, 05 September 2019, 17:04
The rumors that Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag and Assassin's Creed: Rogue will go to Nintendo Switch have been confirmed. The presence of games on the hybrid console was confirmed by Nintendo itself, their launch is scheduled for December 6, this year.
Assassin's Creed Odyssey - Discovery Tour Mode Release Date
Jacob Blazewicz, 04 September 2019, 23:53
Ubisoft has revealed the release date of Assassin's Creed Odyssey: Discovery Tour. The educational module for the Greek installment of the Assassin series will be released next week.
Uplay+ With Problematic Launch
Barth Faryna, 04 September 2019, 22:28
Yesterday, Ubisoft's new service, Uplay+, had its official launch and from the very beginning it had a serious setback. Users reported a large number of problems, which probably resulted from significant interest on the part of the players.
Replica of Sam Fisher's Goggles Teases New Splinter Cell
Paul Wozniak, 04 September 2019, 22:19
GameStop offers a replica of Sam Fisher's goggles from the Splinter Cell series. In their description, we can find information about the upcoming release of the latest installment of the series.


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Country bakery shutting doors after 113 years
A Colac bakery is shutting its doors after 113 years.
Adriana Thwaites, co-owner of Thwaites Bakehouse in Colac, said the business had been in the family since it began in 1909.
She said the reaction had been big from locals.
“They’re all sad, but happy for us,” she said.
“The orders have just been unbelievable.”
Press PLAY below to hear more about why it’s closing down
Picture: Getty iStock


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The United Kingdom Government’s priority is to maintain the UK’s high standards of food and feed safety, and to ensure we take a risk-based, proportionate approach that prioritises the interests and protection of consumers. A range of solutions are being investigated to ensure that from day one, food is as safe as it is now.
On 12 July the UK Government published a White Paper setting out a clear proposal for the future relationship we want to build with the European Union. The Government is proposing the establishment of a free trade area for goods, enabled by a common rulebook for goods including agri-food, covering only those rules necessary to provide for frictionless trade at the border. Maintaining a robust and effective regulatory regime for ensuring the safety of food remains a top priority as the UK prepares to leave the EU.


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SHANGHAI (AdAge.com) -- The global recession has turned cash-hungry Western companies into takeover targets for Chinese marketers, and foreign countries into tempting new markets for Chinese brands and retail stores.
Chinese companies haven't been hit to the same extent by the economic crisis as those in the U.S. and other major countries. Thanks to a massive domestic stimulus package, China's GDP rose 7.9% during the second quarter of 2009 from a year earlier. Economists are optimistic that growth will continue. Credit Suisse, for instance, predicts China's economy will grow 8% this year and 9% in 2010.
Two privately owned Chinese car companies, Geely Automobile Holdings and Chery Automobile Co., are looking for low-cost manufacturing sites from Indonesia to Brazil. Earlier this year, Chinese oil refiner Sinopec acquired Addax, a Swiss company with oil fields in Iraq.
These Chinese companies can take advantage of the recession to pick up bargains. They can also rely on financing from state-owned banks to carry out ambitious expansion plans.
Chinese marketers look overseas
In the past, Chinese enterprises that went overseas tended to be industrial giants looking for resources and cheap manufacturing sites, such as the messy and ultimately unsuccessful effort this summer by Aluminum Corp. of China (Chinalco) to buy Australian mining company Rio Tinto.
But now the internationally minded Chinese companies are marketers trying to build brands and retail operations, not factories.
Lenovo Group is the pioneer. The computer company was one of the first privately owned firms in China to expand overseas when it acquired IBM's personal computing division in 2005.
Some bold gestures such as global sponsorship of the Olympic Games in 2006 in Turin and last year in Beijing helped make the Lenovo name more familiar to Western consumers, and Lenovo will continue that strategy by sponsoring the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai.
But Lenovo is still struggling to overcome an early decision to focus on business-to-business sales, a market that dried up quickly after Western economies started to tumble. So the world's fourth-largest PC manufacturer is refocusing its efforts on consumers rather than corporations.
Earlier this month, Lenovo opened colorful, spacious concept stores in Kuala Lumpur, the capital city of Malaysia. The stores let consumers test and experience Lenovo's full product range, including the ThinkPad and IdeaPad series.
The concept stores "are a key part of our strategy," said Anthony Feng, a brand communications executive at Lenovo's global headquarters in Beijing. "We are renovating existing stores with this new design and are rolling out fresh new ones in both mature markets and emerging markets. Given the current global economic recession, emerging markets are the growth engine for us to sell PCs to consumers."
Li Ning's first overseas flagship store
Li Ning Co., a Chinese sportswear and sporting goods marketer, is taking a similar approach. Unlike Lenovo, Li Ning is building its brand overseas from scratch. Li Ning hired Bates141 as its first global ad agency in April and this month opened its first flagship outside China, in Singapore.
The store is dedicated to badminton, a popular game in Southeast Asia markets such as Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia. Shoppers can try out technology-inspired badminton sportswear and rackets used by top-seeded shuttlers such as Lin Dan, Chen Jin and Bao Chun Lai. Li Ning sponsors the Chinese National Badminton Team and is connected with some top badminton tournaments.
The Singapore store "is an important step of the group's strategy in sports category differentiation and brand internationalization. Expansion into this market not only shows our determination to become the sports brand synonymous with badminton, it also laid a solid foundation for the group's expansion into overseas markets," said Beijing-based Nicholas Chong, Li Ning's chief financial officer.
China's largest appliance maker, Haier Group, hired WPP's Hill & Knowlton this week to help develop and execute communications programs around the world. Haier earlier bought a 20% stake in New Zealand's Fisher and Paykel Appliances in a deal that will help Haier sell its own brand products in New Zealand and Australia.
Haier is "determined to make further inroads both domestically and abroad," said James Heimowitz, CEO, North Asia of Hill & Knowlton.
China's mixed record
Chinese companies have a mixed record overseas. Haier, for example, has manufacturing operations overseas but has failed to develop its brand name in the U.S. and other markets, and pulled out of a bid to buy U.S. appliance maker Maytag Corp in 2005.
Buying U.S. companies has proved a challenge for the Chinese. Telecommunications company Huawei Technologies made an unsuccessful play for a stake in 3Com last year, and China National Offshore Oil failed in a 2005 attempt to buy Unocal.
But Chinese companies are a growing presence. Thirty-seven Chinese companies appeared in Fortune's annual ranking of 500 top global companies this year. That's up from 28 in last year's Fortune 500, and just eight Chinese companies a decade ago. This year the number of U.S. firms fell to 140, the smallest U.S. presence ever in the Fortune 500 ranking.
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- Citi analyst Jim Suva thinks Apple has a 40 percent chance of buying Netflix.
- The transaction would give Apple shareholders 7 percent upside.
- Apple could also increase buybacks with the cash leftover from a Netflix acquisition.
On Tuesday, Apple reported another increase in its cash holdings to a new record of $256.8 billion, 93 percent of which is overseas. Many analysts speculate Apple could soon bring back those profits if the Trump administration follows through on a proposed cut to the tax rate on those returning funds.
Mergers and acquisitions "may make the most sense for some (or all) of Apple's excess cash" since Apple would likely take "too long" to use its cash for accelerating its pace of share repurchases, Citi's Jim Suva said in a Friday note.
"We identified a handful of potential M&A targets. Three are media firms: Netflix, Disney and Hulu. Three are video game developers: Activision, Electronic Arts and Take-Two. And, one is an auto maker: Tesla. Each target confers some strategic benefit to Apple," Suva said. He has a buy rating on Apple.
Investors in Apple could see as much as a 20 percent gain from an Apple acquisition of Disney, or 7 percent from a purchase of Tesla or Netflix, Suva said. The iPhone maker could also use part of the cash to increase buybacks, he said in the note, resulting in "a significant 20 percent lift" in the share price.
Attractiveness of acquisition candidates (deal size, probability, impact to Apple shares)
Source: Citi Research
Apple did not immediately respond to a CNBC request for comment. Management said on the earnings call that it was difficult to speculate on what might happen on tax reform.
The Citi report is also not the first time analysts have speculated about the tech giant buying companies like Netflix or Tesla.
Suva's team of analysts found that Netflix was the most logical target after examining five factors: strategic fit, global scale, transaction size, few non-strategic assets and likely impact on Apple's share price.
"Like Apple, Netflix is global, has no non-core assets (like Disney) and is disrupting the global video ecosystem. Apple could help accelerate this disruption," Suva said. Non-core assets refer to those not essential to a company's operations.
To be sure, respected Wall Street academic on corporate valuations Aswath Damodaran told CNBC earlier this week that the best thing for the iPhone maker to do with the cash is "probably nothing."
"Cash is not the problem. It's what they could do with the cash that could potentially be a problem," Damodaran said. "It can become a problem if people stop trusting management and you know what could cause people to stop trusting management? A big acquisition."
The iPhone maker has also avoided large acquisitions. The only transaction over $1 billion during the last six years was a $3 billion purchase of Beats Electronics in 2014, according to the Citi report.
WATCH: Traders debate what the best use is for corporate cash stockpiles.


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Dubai-based community mall Times Square Center has organised a Home Décor Expo, running from February 24 to March 12, showcasing home décor and furnishing solutions aimed at home-makers and interior décor aficionados.
Infusing contemporary and traditional ideas to demonstrate a fresh, cosmopolitan mode of living, the exhibition is displaying specially curated products from the participating mall retailers including The Urban Yogi, Mobilia, Mamoso, Muse Artz, Sharaf DG and Adventure HQ.
The Home Décor Expo will also give away prizes and the chance for one shopper to win a room make-over worth AED30,000. There will also be design specialists on hand offering hints and tips on how to turn a house into a welcoming home.
“Times Square Center is renowned for its independent specialist retailers that offer quirky one-off pieces that make homes really individual. Our extravaganza brings them together to offer special discounts to shoppers, in addition to fun and informative guidance sessions from industry experts on how to make the best of their own homes,” says mall general manager Rebecca Arnold.
Al Seef is a charming attraction which blends the old and newJanuary 14, 2022 | By Zubina Ahmed
A Dubai-based female entrepreneur Marie-Hélène Stavelot has launched an online platform thatJanuary 11, 2022 | By Justina Eitzinger
Foodlink Global Restaurants & Catering Services, the F&B services enterprise in India
‘Tis the time to be jolly! The festive season is back. Celebrate
“It sounds like this, Luh Pan Koh-ti-dyan and means ‘the daily bread’,
The long weekend might be over but the Etisalat Beach Canteen 2021
UAE gears up to celebrate this year’s National Day celebrations in the
UAE-based Etisalat Group has signed an agreement with elGrocer, a leading online
Amazon.ae announced that the 11.11 sale is back once again this year
Abu Dhabi Cooperative Society’s COOP City store is now open in Lake
Union Coop, a consumer cooperative in the UAE, revealed that 78% of
Union Coop has opened its 23rd branch within the UAE in Jumeirah
Nando’s has revealed their revamped Sheikh Zayed Road outlet where newcomers and
UAE-based Al Maya Group announced that it will be boosting import of
Al Seef is a charming attraction which blends the old and new
Renowned Lollipop and sugar confectionery brand Chupa Chups opened its first ever experiential
Leading luxury brand Louis Vuitton opened its first travel retail store in
Deerfields Mall, Abu Dhabi’s community mall, has relaunched its Farmers Market running
What would the mall of the future look like? Is it going
The Dubai Shopping Festival has just announced a VAT-free shopping experience to
The festive weekend is here and why not combine it with your
Retail Abu Dhabi, the retail platform of the Department of Culture and
Dubai Duty Free’s 72-hours anniversary sale delivered a Christmas bonanza for the
Mercato, the only Italian themed mall in Dubai and one of the
World Bazaar has announced the launch of UAE’s first luxury outdoor furniture


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PlatinumGames Announces Economic Alliance with Tencent
PlatinumGames received a capital investment from Tencent Holdings Ltd, will keep its independence and work towards self-publishing its games.
PlatinumGames announced on January 7 the studio has received a capital investment from Tencent Holdings Ltd, entering a business alliance with the Chinese game company. PlatinumGames mentioned this alliance will strengthen its foundations, and allow the studio to work towards self-publishing the games it develops in the future. Lastly, PlatinumGames will keep striving to create high-quality games and expand its business on a global scale.
PlatinumGames noted that this newfound alliance with Tencent will not influence the independence of the studio. None of its upper management or structure will be changing either.
PlatinumGames made this announcement via an official statement on the studio’s official site, The statement is signed by PlatinumGames President Kenichi Sato.
Tencent Holdings Ltd is the main shareholder of League of Legend‘s Riot Games. The company also owns shares in Activision Blizzard and Epic Games, and it’s currently the biggest game company in the world in terms of money.
All of PlatinumGames’ works, be it the Bayonetta series, NieR: Automata, or more recently Astral Chain, were published by other, bigger companies, most notably Square Enix and Nintendo. The studio moving towards self-publishing is a huge change, and means we’ll see more multi-platform Platinum games in the future.
Tencent regularly strikes deals with Japanese companies to make new games or expand their businesses on the Chinese market.


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Big Tech Facing Creative Disruption
A couple of years ago we were worried big tech had a forever monopoly. Now...
Over the past 30 years we’ve seen big tech grow to dominance and then a worry that they have become this set of unbreakable monopolies. And yet now we’re seeing many of them facing the possibility of being displaced.
Lets take a look at FAANG+MT and see where they are now. And then below, what that means, especially in terms of monopoly regulation.
Facebook (Meta) is one of the two looking at the possibility of shrinking down to a remnant of it’s once upon a time total domination of social media. The direct threats are TikTok and Zuckerberg’s absolute control.
But on top of that there’s a general move toward people spending less time on social media and the time they do spend being spread out across more sites. And the bet on the Metaverse is unlikely to pay off. So Facebook is likely to go the way of MySpace.
Apple is in a really good position at present between their iPhone environment and all the pieces of that from the app store to iTunes. And they remain the best consumer electronics manufacturer by far.
But… nothing new. The app store monopoly is under threat from regulators in the US and EU. Once that is won, iTunes is surely next. They remain strong but over time their centrality will likely dissipate. There’s no Steve Jobs in the wings ready to come out and bring back the creative spark.
Amazon is in good shape with a strong future. AWS is their golden goose and that has every reason to remain the dominant hosting provider. And they continue to have a strong monopoly over online shopping & fulfillment.
They do face anti-trust action from the federal government, state AGs, and the EU. There are various ways this can play out. But they are likely to come out of this continuing to hold most of their advantages.
Netflix is not really “big” in terms of their valuation. But streaming is the future for content and they remain the leader in that. On the flip side, they’re facing more competition than ever.
They will likely figure a way through to continued profits. But this market segment is clearly very competitive and will continue to be competitive. So from the point of view of us consumers, we’re all in a good place here.
Google (Alphabet) - These guys are in trouble. ML (Machine Learning) is going to radically change search, replacing the whole approach to search and finding information. Google is a leader in ML themselves and may well have one of the new solutions. But this new approach by definition is not a natural monopoly and so there will be strong competitors.
And like Facebook & Twitter, Alphabet’s YouTube division is going to be facing gigantic governmental pressure to better handle the negatives in social content. Google has a future, but it is unlikely to include a monopolistic position.
Microsoft used to be the biggest monopoly. And now… not a problem. Windows & Office remain monopolies but they are in market segments declining in importance. Windows time is over (it will remain a sizeable market) and Office is moving to the cloud where it will face competitors.
Microsoft does not have a social media component. There big efforts are in Data/AI and hosting (Azure), very competitive markets where they are a major player (good) but not dominating over all.
So they’re in excellent shape and not facing any serious threats from government action. What a change from 20 years ago when they were the biggest & baddest of all the big tech monopolies.
Tesla1 is imploding. First off, they’re now facing serious competition from all the other car companies while more and more complaints are surfacing about the quality of their cars. And their self driving mode remains very questionable.
In the midst of all this their CEO is taking time away from running Tesla to run Twitter into the ground shit-posting everyone who hurts his feelings. Musk buying Twitter is the worst thing that ever happened to Tesla.
So what does this all mean? First off, while big tech all had very lucrative monopolies that the government should have addressed earlier, the market is now, in many cases, resolving that issue. Great news.
Second, we’re in the midst of another period of great change. Part of that change will mean several of the big tech companies will go the way of IBM and shrink to sizable companies with a decent market share, but no longer a monopoly nor an issue of great concern.
Third, the issues we have around content & social media aren’t going away, but they are evolving. The issues with companies gaining a natural monopoly aren’t going away, but it will be new (or existing) companies that gain these new monopoly. And when they do, rather than wait 30 years for the market to address it, the government needs to step up and take appropriate action.
Finally, there remains important action the government needs to take now on the remaining big tech monopolies:
End the app store (Apple & Google) and iTunes monopolies.
End, or make a public utility, of the Amazon storefront and the monopoly advantage of Amazon Prime.
As to governmental lawsuits claiming monopolistic behavior against Meta & Alphabet (search part) - drop them. By the time those suits get to court, are fought out, appealed, and are completed - those monopolies they are sitting on will be gone. It will be a better use of resources to instead go after Disney & Monsanto.
Thanks for reading Liberal and Loving It! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.
I own a Tesla Model 3.


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In just four decades, the Chinese has managed to become the largest buyer of numerous commodities in the world. Its appetite for various commodities has increased since China’s economic reforms back in 1978. This has led China to become the second-largest economy in the world.
According to a report by a commodities consultancy, Wood McKenzie, China’s influence on global commodity markets is unparalleled. It imports more than 60% of its domestic demand for gas, oil, and iron ore. Its imports for coal, oil, and liquified natural gas (LNG) make up about one-fifth of the seaborne trade globally. In terms of bulk commodities, China is now the world’s largest consumer.
Due to the massive growth in manufacturing and construction sectors and the needs of 1.4 billion people in the country, the demand for raw materials such as steel and copper in China has increased.
For the past year, there have been rising fears over the prices of commodities amid the ongoing trade war with the United States and the economic slowdown around the world. However, it seems that while the trade tensions between two of the biggest economies in the world are continuing and the Chinese economy is growing moderately, the country will still be a major consumer of numerous commodities like copper, oil, steel, and soybeans.
In China, the demand for copper has grown due to the booming property sector. This demand has made up for half of the copper demand worldwide. This is a far cry from the under 10% demand the country had back in the 1980s.
With the rise of industrialization, the demand for steel in China has increased in the past 40 years. Steel is widely used in different sectors including construction.
As for oil, the demand may not be as much as that of steel and copper, China is still one of the top energy consumers in the world. In 2018, it accounted for 18% of the global crude oil consumption.
In the last 40 years, the consumption of soybeans in China has increased more than 12 times. It accounts for 60% of U.S. soybean exports. With the current trade war between the United States and China, this has affected the prices and demands for soybeans.
Despite their ability to buy different kinds of commodities in large numbers, the Chinese believe that they still don’t have a say in setting prices. This has prompted the setting up of offshore operations by Chinese commodity exchanges and brokerages so that clients outside of the country can be served better.
The very first offshore exchange established by China was launched in Singapore in 2018. The Asia Pacific Exchange focuses on new commodities futures contracts in palm olein and fuel oil.
According to the CEO of Asia Pacific Exchange, Eugene Zhu, the goal is to make the Chinese price setters for various commodities and not just price-takers. The bourse would be able to give the Chinese the chance to discover better pricing of the different commodities.
Other bourses in China like the Dalian Commodity Exchange and the Shanghai Futures Exchange have also established overseas operations that are focused on marketing commodity products including crude oil futures.


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Johnson & Johnson’s pharmaceutical business will take the spotlight Wednesday at its annual meeting with analysts as the company tries to allay patrons’ points over its talc-based baby powder.
The New Brunswick, New Jersey, based health-care conglomerate makes a wide range of merchandise, collectively with on a daily foundation household merchandise like Tylenol, Neutrogena face wash and Acuvue contacts as well as to prescribed drugs Xarelto and Invokana. Prescription medication are crucial revenue driver for J&J, accounting for half of its $81.58 billion in 2018 product sales. But its consumer merchandise division has come under stress amid 1000’s of lawsuits that accuse its namesake talc baby powder of inflicting most cancers.
J&J plans to launch 10 new medication by 2023, the company launched Wednesday. CEO Alex Gorsky acknowledged the company needs to preserve centered whatever the litigation.
“It starts with our 100-plus-year performance of doing things in an appropriate and responsible way, and that’s certainly what we think we’ve done here, and we have a very litigious industry,” he in an interview Wednesdsay with CNBC’s Meg Tirrell. “But what’s most important is that we stay focused on serving customers, that we stay focused on innovation and really bringing these new products to market.”
The agency faces 1000’s of lawsuits alleging its talc baby powder merchandise embody asbestos and triggered ovarian most cancers and mesothelioma. A Reuters report in December acknowledged J&J knew for a few years that its baby powder contained asbestos, a story the company referred to as “an absurd conspiracy theory.”
“Of course we’re spending time educating our consumers about the issues that you raised, but here today again we’re going to be talking about these next several generations of products, and I think that’s where most patients and most consumers really want us to stay focused so that ultimately look we can cure HIV, we can find a cure for Alzheimer’s and some of these other conditions we continue to work on,” Gorsky acknowledged.
While J&J’s pharma business retains rising thanks to medication like Stelara and Remicade, its completely different two objects, consumer and medical items, have lagged. Still, Gorsky says the three firms are larger collectively.
“We think so because it gives us an opportunity to find new health-care solutions wherever these opportunities may occur,” Gorsky acknowledged.
The agency’s shares have been little modified in premarket shopping for and promoting Wednesday.
For additional on investing in health-care innovation, click on on proper right here to be part of CNBC at our Healthy Returns Summit in New York City on May 21.


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Forsatz Recently Honored During PR Week “40 Under 40” Recognition Event
OAK BROOK, Ill. (Restaurant News Release) McDonald’s USA announced today that Cheryll Forsatz has been named to the newly created position of Communications Director for McDonald’s New York Metro Region. Forsatz will serve as communications advisor for McDonald’s New York Metro leadership team, staff and franchisees, providing counsel on communications strategies and tactics to help build sales, guest counts and market share. Additionally, she will help facilitate alignment in support of McDonald’s U.S. Plan to Win, the East Division Areas of Focus, as well as McDonald’s New York Metro Regional business plans.
Forsatz, recently recognized as one of PRWeek’s “40 Under 40” honorees for her contributions in the field of public relations, will report to Bill Whitman, Vice President, Communications, McDonald’s USA and Mason Smoot, Vice President and General Manager, McDonald’s New York Metro Region.
“Cheryll brings nearly 20 years of strategic leadership, public relations and communications expertise to this new role,” said Whitman. “She has the perfect combination of experience, market knowledge and a deep understanding of our brand, necessary to take on this new role and to take our brand to the next level in what is by far the most visible and dynamic marketplace in the world. We are extremely pleased to have Cheryll on our team.”
In this new role, Forsatz will help build and strengthen McDonald’s relationships with key internal and external audiences as well as direct public relations, public affairs, government relations and crisis management activities.
“Cheryll has a proven track record of success providing PR and communications counsel to McDonald’s leadership and more than 120 of our owner/operators in the New York Metro Region,” said Smoot. “From her work on the grand openings of our new European-inspired restaurants in Manhattan, to the launch of McCafe and the ‘VIP Moms’ initiative to strengthen brand trust, Cheryll consistently demonstrates that she not only understands our business priorities and culture, but that she also possesses creative leadership qualities that motivate and inspire others.”
Prior to this position, Forsatz worked for the MWW Group, one of the nation’s top ten public relations firms, where she served as Senior Vice President and Director of the agency’s New York consumer practice. While at the MWW Group, Forsatz led the McDonald’s New York Metro Region account and provided counsel for clients in various industries including food and beverage, financial services, health and fitness, retail and consumer packaged goods.
A recipient of numerous agency and industry awards, including the PRSA Silver Anvil, PRWeek‘s Top 10 Cause Marketing Campaign, Gold SABRE Awards and many others, Forsatz has extensive experience in public relations and marketing communications for a variety of global consumer brands.
Developing PR strategies that benefit the community is an integral part of her new role at McDonald’s. Forsatz frequently works with Ronald McDonald House Charities to optimize fundraising efforts and works with the team responsible for the charity’s major community service initiatives. She is an active member of Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in Wayne, NJ where she is a lector and member of the school’s marketing and fundraising committees.
Forsatz holds two bachelor’s degrees from Syracuse University. The first is in Psychology, and the second is in Public Relations from the S.I. Newhouse School of Communications. Cheryll lives with her husband and two children in Wayne, NJ.
McDonald’s USA, LLC, is the leading foodservice provider in the United States serving a variety of wholesome food made from quality ingredients to more than 26 million customers every day. Nearly 90 percent of McDonald’s 14,000 U.S. restaurants are independently owned and operated by local business men and women. Customers can now log online for free at any of the 11,500 participating Wi-Fi enabled McDonald’s U.S. restaurants. For more information, visit www.mcdonalds.com, or follow us on Twitter (@McDonalds) and @McCafeyourday) and Facebook (Facebook.com/McDonalds) for updates on our business, promotions and products.


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Another year, another ISE done and dusted – and what a show it was.
My personal highlight from this year has to be seeing how much our industry has grown. The sheer volume of people who attend the show impressed me.
Every year I feel like I run out of time to see everyone and everything that I wanted to, and that’s purely because the show just keeps getting bigger and bigger.
ISE 2017 really demonstrated how big the AV industry has become. Looking back at where the first show was in Geneva 13 years ago, and seeing the level of stand designs and volume of exhibitors on show this year solidifies that we really are part of a thriving industry.
This year was a great show for us and we had some amazing product launches. My show highlight has to be the volume of LED displayed and the level of enthusiasm in this product category. We saw industry-leading developments in the electronic system architecture, market-leading advances in design and pixel pitch barriers broken.
The influx of Narrow Pixel Pitches (NPP) on show this year was impressive, and it was fantastic to see Leyard launching its 0.9mm, with the tiny 0.7mm teasing the industry. Samsung launched an industry first – its advanced dynamic peaking technology. The display giant has drawn on its experience with LCD practices and applied this to driving directly-lit LED pixels, enhancing the peak brightness of video content.
This latest development is ground-breaking as it just shows that LED is forever developing in new ways to produce an even better product.
With the LED industry growing so much, you have to make sure you stand out. Last year, 34% of all video wall products sold were NPP LED. As the industry expands, how do you stand out in an ever-growing market at a show like ISE?
You need to have the wow factor! Something that makes your product the ‘must have’ display. Absen definitely achieved that this year with a range of stunning product launches. The brand new HDV has a unique cable free, honeycomb cellular design that positions itself unlike any other product on the market. Every year LED delivers a slimmer cabinet, and this front install product is no different, at only 65mm!
With so many outstanding launches and developments this year, I can’t wait to see where the LED market takes us in 2017, and where we will be at ISE 2018.
Read the full story here: http://www.avinteractive.com/blogs/led-makes-the-wow-factor-23-02-2017/
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Construction of the Apple Park in Santa Clara Valley designed by Foster + Partners in partnership with Apple is being completed. In the month of April 2017 employees will be able to move into their new offices, and Apple estimates it will take six months to move about 12,000 employees. Work will however continue throughout the summer on the completion of the big campus based on Steve Jobs’ concept of a centre for creativity and collaboration, the home of innovation for generations to come.
Located in a panoramic spot, Apple Park will transform miles of asphalt sprawl into green space for the Santa Clara Valley, and will also include a theatre dedicated to the memory of Steve Jobs (Steve Jobs Theater). Employees will have two miles of walking and running paths in a large park with an orchard, a meadow and a pond. This creative, vital environment captures the essence of Jobs’ beloved California landscape. The park will include a visitor centre, an Apple Store and a public cafe, as well as a fitness centre for employees and, of course, research and work areas.
Foster + Partners’ project will become the home of innovation for generations to come. The project will be green not only thanks to the presence of more than 9000 native drought-resistant trees, but in terms of the green energy used on the campus, thanks to one of the world’s largest on-site solar energy installations.


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High heels lead to low spendingBy Emily Miller • Published: November 28th, 2013
Category: Health in a Heartbeat
Walk into the mall on Black Friday with your best foot forward. Just make sure that foot is in a high heel.
Black Friday is all about the savings, and this year there’s a new way to save big. Leave your sneakers and flip-flops at home, and strap on your highest heels. Researchers have found that wearing high heels can actually curb your spending by giving you a heightened sense of balance.
Brigham Young University conducted six experiments, asking participants to perform tasks like leaning back on a chair while shopping online and standing on one foot while considering which printer to purchase. The study’s authors found that consumers experiencing a heightened sense of balance were more likely to weigh the options and go with a product that falls in the middle of the high-end, low-end scale. For example, consumers who balanced while shopping were more likely to opt for the 42-inch TV for $450 rather than the cheaper $300 32-inch set or the costlier 50-inch screen for $650.
The study, which appeared in the Journal of Marketing Research, is part of an emerging area of research that examines the relationship between the physical sensations we feel and the decisions we make. According to the BYU study, the researchers say people should be aware of how physical forces can change the way they think about things.
If heels are not your thing, don’t worry. The scientists say that most anything that forces your mind to focus on balance affects your shopping choices as well. Try riding up and down the escalator or shopping immediately following a yoga class.
So, this Thanksgiving add high heels to your list of things to be thankful for. After all, these fashionable footwear could be the secret to successful saving.


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Tennis star and entrepreneur Serena Williams recently launched her own jewelry line, and now a creative campaign celebrating strong women will accessorize the line.
The creative campaign, developed by Sublime Communications, captures Williams’ strong sense of self and looks to help inspire women to love themselves and treat themselves with self gift-giving, according to the language on the website and in the campaign.
Serena Williams Jewelry is an extension of Williams’ S by Serena clothing line and a natural progression for her growing entrepreneurial empire. The campaign conveys the core essence of Williams, who embodies inspiration, empowerment and celebration of self.
The campaign features digital marketing and out-of-home and will eventually add video and television. Taglines like “Be an accessory to no one” and “Sweep yourself off your own feet” accompany images of Williams wearing her shiny pendants, rings, earrings and necklaces.
Other empowering tags highlight non-Williams-starring ads, like “Run circles around every challenge” which shows a double diamond-studded ring, and “Why shouldn’t a woman ruffle a few feathers?” to spotlight feather-shaped earrings.
Agency: Sublime Communications
Client: Serena Williams Jewelry


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By David Brooks2012-12-14T07:00:00
In a similar vein to last year’s Christmas ‘Walk of Shame’ advert, Harvey Nichols’ new tongue-in-cheek campaign addresses another potentially embarrassing scenario of the festive party season – women wearing the same dress to an office party.
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|By PR Newswire||
|September 4, 2014 09:15 AM EDT||
- A new lightning fast octa-core smartphone with superior single-touch fingerprint technology
BERLIN, Sept. 4, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Huawei today launched Ascend Mate7 at Internationale Funkausstellung Berlin (IFA) 2014, featuring a big 6-inch screen with FHD display for enhanced entertainment viewing, a slimmer 7.9mm body for increased comfort, a more powerful octa-core chipset for superior performance, and a longer-lasting 4100 mAh battery. With new single-touch fingerprint technology and EMUI 3.0, Ascend Mate7 dials up the mobile experience to make it easier for users to live life to the fullest. Ascend Mate7 is the latest big-screen smartphone from Huawei as it showcased its big ambitions as the number three smartphone vendor in the world.
"Today marks the arrival of our fastest and most compelling big-screen smartphone experience for consumers. It's a symbol of our relentless commitment to 'Make it Possible' for people everywhere to enjoy our premium quality products," said Richard Yu, CEO, Huawei Consumer Business Group. "Huawei Ascend Mate7 actually leads the big-screen pack with smarter performance, impressive power efficiency, and outstanding convenience with its superior single-touch fingerprint technology."
Boasting octa-core architecture, Ascend Mate7 has an intelligent Huawei Kirin 925 processor made up of four large A15 1.8 GHz and four small A7 1.3 GHz chipsets which are activated in different configurations depending on the power needs of a specific app or function so the smartphone can be smarter with power management. It saves up to 50% of the battery by automatically using smaller A7 cores to power standard apps that consumers use at least 80% of the time, and kicking in the larger A15 during high-performance use such as gaming. The processor also automatically activates additional cores when it detects that 85% to 95% of a single core's processing capability is being used.
Ascend Mate7 is possibly the market's first 6-inch smartphone with instant single-touch fingerprint access to put an end to password fatigue. It enables users to unlock the phone at least 80% faster than devices that use a slower sweeping recognition option. Located on the back of the handset and measuring 9.16mm x 9.16mm, the reader supports up to five sets of different fingerprint records which can be allocated to normal and guest modes, so users can switch modes to enhance protection when securing private folders, applications, or payment information. It has a higher 508PPI ratio for enhanced reader accuracy so there's no need to swipe repeatedly before being able to unlock the device -- even with wet fingers or under light rain conditions. ARM TrustZone also stores encrypted fingerprint data within the chipset for better protection by SecureOS, and prevents direct access by third-parties.
Featuring the fastest LTE Cat6 connectivity with download speeds of up to 300 Mbps, Ascend Mate7 enables HD movies to be downloaded in less than 30 seconds. Running on a high density 4100 mAh Li-Polymer battery, Ascend Mate7 managed to fit a huge battery in the slim body for more than two days of non-stop normal use. With Huawei's proprietary power-saving technology, Ascend Mate7 provides three power saving modes -- normal, smart, and ultra power saving.
Style and Substance
A rare find for smartphones of this size, Ascend Mate7 is made up of more than 95% metal and features an interior structure made of a strong aluminum alloy for superior heat reduction. At only 7.9mm slim and weighing 185g, it has an ergonomically curved back for easier operation with just one hand and an ultra-narrow 2.9mm bezel that delivers a compelling 83% screen-to-body ratio. Ascend Mate7 comes in three chic colors, moonlight silver, obsidian black and amber gold.
With a 6-inch FHD in-cell LTPS display that consumes less power and JDI Nega-NEO technology for an impressive 1500:1 high contrast ratio, Ascend Mate7 delivers incredibly sharp images. It has a 13MP rear-facing camera to capture better party photos in low lighting with Sony's 4th generation BSI sensor and f/2.0 aperture. In addition, the 5MP front-facing camera adopts the industry-leading 5P non-spherical lens for higher definition and less image distortion.
Ascend Mate7 will launch with EMUI 3.0, the new version of Huawei's intuitive user interface that makes it easier to operate with one hand and features a brand new look across the entire software interface. The new timeline design is used extensively throughout for enhanced consistency and usability across various apps. In addition, it actively addresses daily needs intuitively through practical and visually appealing design details, such as the convergence of key smartphone functions -- call, contact, and messaging -- that can now be easily switched between with a single horizontal swipe.
Availability and Accessories
The recommended retail price of standard Huawei Ascend Mate7 (2GB RAM and 16GB ROM) is 499 euros, while that of the premium Huawei Ascend Mate7 (3GB RAM and 32GB ROM) is 599 euros. It will be available in more than 30 countries/territories including mainland China, Hong Kong, UK, Germany, Italy, France and Spain from Q3 2014, with other markets to follow. Accessories include the new UltimoPower Active Noise Cancelling Earphones that reduce noise by 15-30db and features for the first time, a self-charging internal battery when connected to a smartphone and two hours of use when connected to other devices, as well as leather cases and a charging stand that converts the smartphone into a digital photo frame.
About Huawei Consumer Business Group
For more information, please visit:
Huawei Consumer BG online: consumer.huawei.com/en/
Mobile, social, Big Data, and cloud have fundamentally changed the way we live. “Anytime, anywhere” access to data and information is no longer a luxury; it’s a requirement, in both our personal and professional lives. For IT organizations, this means pressure has never been greater to deliver meaningful services to the business and customers.
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In 2014, the market witnessed a massive migration to the cloud as enterprises finally overcame their fears of the cloud’s viability, security, etc. Over the past 18 months, AWS, Google and Microsoft have waged an ongoing battle through a wave of price cuts and new features. For IT executives, sorting through all the noise to make the best cloud investment decisions has become daunting. Enterprises can and are moving away from a "one size fits all" cloud approach. The new competitive field has ...
Sep. 2, 2015 07:45 PM EDT Reads: 141
Advances in technology and ubiquitous connectivity have made the utilization of a dispersed workforce more common. Whether that remote team is located across the street or country, management styles/ approaches will have to be adjusted to accommodate this new dynamic. In his session at 17th Cloud Expo, Sagi Brody, Chief Technology Officer at Webair Internet Development Inc., will focus on the challenges of managing remote teams, providing real-world examples that demonstrate what works and what...
Sep. 2, 2015 07:15 PM EDT
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Sep. 2, 2015 07:00 PM EDT Reads: 119
SYS-CON Events announced today that the "Second Containers & Microservices Expo" will take place November 3-5, 2015, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA. Containers and microservices have become topics of intense interest throughout the cloud developer and enterprise IT communities.
Sep. 2, 2015 06:45 PM EDT Reads: 633
DevOps Summit, taking place Nov 3-5, 2015, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA, is co-located with 17th Cloud Expo and will feature technical sessions from a rock star conference faculty and the leading industry players in the world. The widespread success of cloud computing is driving the DevOps revolution in enterprise IT. Now as never before, development teams must communicate and collaborate in a dynamic, 24/7/365 environment. There is no time to wait for long development...
Sep. 2, 2015 06:45 PM EDT Reads: 1,586
The 17th International Cloud Expo has announced that its Call for Papers is open. 17th International Cloud Expo, to be held November 3-5, 2015, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA, brings together Cloud Computing, APM, APIs, Microservices, Security, Big Data, Internet of Things, DevOps and WebRTC to one location. With cloud computing driving a higher percentage of enterprise IT budgets every year, it becomes increasingly important to plant your flag in this fast-expanding bu...
Sep. 2, 2015 06:30 PM EDT Reads: 1,656
SYS-CON Events announced today that IceWarp will exhibit at the 17th International Cloud Expo®, which will take place on November 3–5, 2015, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA. IceWarp, the leader of cloud and on-premise messaging, delivers secured email, chat, documents, conferencing and collaboration to today's mobile workforce, all in one unified interface
Sep. 2, 2015 06:00 PM EDT Reads: 463
The web app is agile. The REST API is agile. The testing and planning are agile. But alas, data infrastructures certainly are not. Once an application matures, changing the shape or indexing scheme of data often forces at best a top down planning exercise and at worst includes schema changes that force downtime. The time has come for a new approach that fundamentally advances the agility of distributed data infrastructures. Come learn about a new solution to the problems faced by software organ...
Sep. 2, 2015 05:45 PM EDT Reads: 120
SYS-CON Events announced today that Micron Technology, Inc., a global leader in advanced semiconductor systems, will exhibit at the 17th International Cloud Expo®, which will take place on November 3–5, 2015, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA. Micron’s broad portfolio of high-performance memory technologies – including DRAM, NAND and NOR Flash – is the basis for solid state drives, modules, multichip packages and other system solutions. Backed by more than 35 years of tech...
Sep. 2, 2015 05:30 PM EDT Reads: 267
Skeuomorphism usually means retaining existing design cues in something new that doesn’t actually need them. However, the concept of skeuomorphism can be thought of as relating more broadly to applying existing patterns to new technologies that, in fact, cry out for new approaches. In his session at DevOps Summit, Gordon Haff, Senior Cloud Strategy Marketing and Evangelism Manager at Red Hat, discussed why containers should be paired with new architectural practices such as microservices rathe...
Sep. 2, 2015 05:00 PM EDT Reads: 426
SYS-CON Events announced today the Containers & Microservices Bootcamp, being held November 3-4, 2015, in conjunction with 17th Cloud Expo, @ThingsExpo, and @DevOpsSummit at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA. This is your chance to get started with the latest technology in the industry. Combined with real-world scenarios and use cases, the Containers and Microservices Bootcamp, led by Janakiram MSV, a Microsoft Regional Director, will include presentations as well as hands-on...
Sep. 2, 2015 04:45 PM EDT Reads: 391
SYS-CON Events announced today that Pythian, a global IT services company specializing in helping companies leverage disruptive technologies to optimize revenue-generating systems, has been named “Bronze Sponsor” of SYS-CON's 17th Cloud Expo, which will take place on November 3–5, 2015, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA. Founded in 1997, Pythian is a global IT services company that helps companies compete by adopting disruptive technologies such as cloud, Big Data, advance...
Sep. 2, 2015 04:15 PM EDT Reads: 352
In his session at @ThingsExpo, Lee Williams, a producer of the first smartphones and tablets, will talk about how he is now applying his experience in mobile technology to the design and development of the next generation of Environmental and Sustainability Services at ETwater. He will explain how M2M controllers work through wirelessly connected remote controls; and specifically delve into a retrofit option that reverse-engineers control codes of existing conventional controller systems so the...
Sep. 2, 2015 04:15 PM EDT Reads: 211
With the Apple Watch making its way onto wrists all over the world, it’s only a matter of time before it becomes a staple in the workplace. In fact, Forrester reported that 68 percent of technology and business decision-makers characterize wearables as a top priority for 2015. Recognizing their business value early on, FinancialForce.com was the first to bring ERP to wearables, helping streamline communication across front and back office functions. In his session at @ThingsExpo, Kevin Roberts...
Sep. 2, 2015 04:00 PM EDT


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Screencap from the Skoda Belgium website
We don't have much cause to talk about Skoda on this side of the Atlantic, but an unusual new promotion from the Czech Republic-based brand has turned our heads.
Skoda's Belgian subsidiary recently launched a contest using the Facebook "like" button as currency -- seriously, it's been assigned a monetary value. Every time folks click the "like" button on the Belgian Skoda's Facebook page (tagged "Generous Skoda"), the company drops the price of a Skoda Fabia "Rock" by two euros. The result is a little like haggling, but instead of doing it one-on-one with a salesperson, you're doing it with hundreds of friends and strangers across the world's largest social network.
The Fabia will be sold to the first person who agrees to pay the asking price. Jump in too early, and you risk paying more than you might if you'd waited another day or two. Jump in too late, and someone else will beat you to the punch.
It's an ingenious campaign, really. It generates huge awareness about the Fabia model; it creates an engaging, suspenseful promotion; and of course, it builds Skoda's Facebook fan base. The price of a new Skoda Fabia is 12,950 euros, and the promotional price has dropped to 10,362, so a quick run at the calculator tells us that 1,294 Facebook users have become Skoda Facebook fans since the contest launched. Not too shabby.
We can think of a few U.S. models that might benefit from a simliar promotion. Scion, Kia, MINI, Nissan: you might want to take a couple of notes.


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In the name of ostensibly tightening cyber security regulations, Thailand ends up walking down the slippery slope of privacy protection:
Amendments to Thailand’s 2007 Computer Crime Act to be considered by parliament next month have come under fire from critics who say the bill could give state officials sweeping powers to spy on internet users and restrict online speech.
Critics say parliament is likely to approve the amendments because lawmakers voted unanimously to pass the bill in its first reading.
The amendments come as the military government has ramped up online censorship since the May 2014 coup, particularly perceived insults to the royal family, as it tries to ensure a smooth transition following the death of revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej on Oct. 13 and ahead of a 2017 general election.
Since the coup, the government has shut down or blocked thousands of websites it has deemed offensive or inappropriate.
The amendments to the cyber law, seen by Reuters on Tuesday, have pro-democracy activists worried that they could lead to arbitrary invasion of privacy without a court warrant.
If you are a King and do not have thick enough skin to handle online criticism, and need to rely on censoring perceived insults to your royal family, then you are no true King. The more you censor, the more insults you invite.


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The supermarket’s refresh of its fresh produce ranges using ‘fake’ farms has left a sour taste, but it won’t last for long, says David Burrows.
Poor old Tesco: just when it seems to have come up with a decent idea, the media throws it back in its face. More than 70 lines of fruit, veg, poultry, pork and beef have been revamped under seven new “farm” brands. These include Redmere Farms for veg, Rosedene Farms for fruits and Boswell Farms, which look after the beef. Trouble is – none of them exist.
The story was almost too good to be true – especially for those who enjoy a little Twitter-based Tesco-bashing. “Aren’t real farms good enough?” tweeted @systems4food. “We live in a land where real farms go bust so @Tesco can invent fake ones,” screamed @JHallHDI. “Doesn’t Tesco want its brand to be trustable again?” wrote @tarabluesky.
The critics do have a point. Some suggested the move has risk written all over it given the emphasis on provenance and transparency. Tesco’s announcement coincided with the first ever assessment of food crime in the UK, as well as figures from Mintel’s 2016 shopper survey showing that 55% of Brits want to buy British whenever they can.
“This feels a little out of step with current trends in consumer attitudes, which seem to be shifting towards authenticity, and understanding where food comes from,” said Nick Lee, a professor of marketing at Warwick business school.
Having said that, Mintel found that 45% feel British goods are more expensive than imported ones, and only a third are happy to pay the premium. For this reason, experts like Lee doubt whether the social media outrage will cause people to shop elsewhere.
Planet Retail’s David Gray is also sceptical. Tesco’s refresh is all about driving people into the store, he said. More appealing packaging and far more attractive price points (Rosedene’s blueberries are, at the time of writing, half the price of the equivalent Tesco value product, while Redmere’s parsnips were also a snip at 54p versus the own label bag at 90p) could lead them to leave their ethics at the door.
Not that Tesco has done anything wrong. It has really “stolen” this idea from the discounters, said Gray. “Why is it OK for Aldi and Lidl to do it and not Tesco?” It’s because big targets often make easy targets, he added.
“My view is that it is just a brand,” explained Dominic Watkins, a partner at law firm DWF. “Provided that it does not suggest or imply a particular geographical origin that would mislead the consumer then it should not be misleading.”
Others tend to agree. “It’s just a name, just a brand name,” retail consultant Alison Pike told Marketing magazine. “They could use the name of a real farm – but would the customer know? No.”
But now many more consumers do know that Tesco’s farm brands are fudged. Whether they really care remains to be seen.


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WASHINGTON (AP) -- The U.S. economy grew at a slightly faster 2 percent annual rate from July through September, buoyed by more spending by consumers and the federal government.
Growth accelerated from the 1.3 percent rate in the April-June quarter, the Commerce Department said Friday.
The report is the last snapshot of economic growth before Americans choose a president in 11 days.
The pickup in growth could lend weight to President Barack Obama's message that the economy is improving. Still, growth remains too weak to rapidly boost hiring.
And the 1.74 percent annual growth rate for the first nine months of 2012 trails last year's 1.8 percent growth - a point that Republican nominee Mitt Romney might emphasize.
The economy grew faster last quarter because consumer spending rose at a 2 percent annual rate, up from a 1.5 percent rate in the second quarter. Spending on homebuilding and renovations increased at an annual rate of more than 14 percent. And federal spending surged, mainly because of the sharpest increase in defense spending in more than three years.
Growth was held back by the first drop in exports in more than three years and flat business investment in equipment and software.
The economy was also slowed by the severe drought last summer in the Midwest. The drought cut agriculture stockpiles and reduced growth by nearly a half-point.
The government's report covers gross domestic product. GDP measures the nation's total output of goods and services - from restaurant meals and haircuts to airplanes, appliances and highways.
It was the government's first of three estimates of growth for the July-September quarter. And it sketched a picture that's been familiar all year: The economy is growing at a tepid rate, slowed by high unemployment and corporate anxiety over an unresolved budget crisis and a slowing global economy.
While growth remains modest, the factors supporting the economy have changed. Exports and business investment drove growth for most of the recovery, but are now fading. Meanwhile, consumer spending has ticked up. And housing is adding to growth after a six-year slump.
Consumer spending drives nearly 70 percent of economic activity.
Businesses have grown more cautious since spring, in part because customer demand has remained modest and exports have declined as the global economy has slowed.
Many companies worry that their overseas sales could dampen further if recession spreads throughout Europe and growth slows further in China, India and other developing countries. Businesses also fear the tax increases and government spending cuts that will kick in next year if Congress doesn't reach a budget deal.
Since the recovery from the Great Recession began in June 2009, the U.S. economy has grown at the slowest rate of any recovery in the post-World War II period. And economists think growth will remain sluggish at least through the first half of 2013.
Some analysts believe the economy will start to pick up in the second half of next year.


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The typical recreational jogger wears out a couple of pairs of running shoes a year. A serious runner can go through at least four pairs.
Multiply that by the millions of running enthusiasts, and it's easy to see that mountains of old shoes, consisting of rubber and plastic, are accumulating in closets or finding their way to landfills and incinerators.
"One lady came in and said her husband's got 20 pairs of shoes in the garage," said Ray Crothers, an avid runner and co-owner of The Run In, a Rocky Hill store.
Many of his customers don't know what to do with all their old shoes, except throw them away.
Shoe manufacturers are just beginning to come up with an alternative: recycling.
Their customers' desire for fitness and better health often is accompanied by an interest in improving the environment, and the manufacturers' involvement in recycling is an indicator of how environmental concerns are influencing industry.
Nike, one of the top makers of running shoes, has begun grinding old running shoes into two basic materials, rubber from the soles, and fabric, such as nylon, from the uppers. The rubber is being used to make all-weather running tracks. Potential uses of the fabric include home insulation and padding for furniture.
Other athletic-shoe companies are getting into recycling as well, but instead of making old shoes into new products, they are making new shoes from recycled materials taken from various products.
Reebok International Ltd., based in Stoughton, Mass., plans in January to introduce a lightweight hiking boot made partly out of recycled materials. The outer sole is made largely from rubber from car tires, and fabric and foam padding are derived from plastic from soda bottles and recycled wool and polyester fabrics.
Another company, Deja Shoe, doesn't make running shoes but makes all kinds of casual shoes, including a day-hiking boot and
Eco Sneaks, almost solely from recycled materials. Prices range from $40 to $80.
Deja Shoe, based in Tigard, Ore., uses recycled polypropylene and recycled cotton canvas to make footwear that retailers began selling last year. The materials are derived from items including used wool blankets and clothing, soda bottles and milk jugs, and plastic that comes from factories that make disposable diapers, said Bob Farentinos, vice president for environmental affairs.
Nike, based in Beaverton, Ore., conducted two pilot programs this year, one in Fort Myers, Fla., and the other in Seattle, in which consumers were encouraged to bring their old running shoes to retail stores so they could be collected for Nike's recycling programs.
Runners signed up for Sunday's New York Marathon could drop off old running shoes at a running exposition at the Hilton Hotel in the city, according to Nike's running program. The drop-off program, which ends today, is sponsored by Nike and Rodale Press, a Pennsylvania company that publishes Runner's World and other magazines that focus on fitness, health and the environment.
Nike plans to see how the New York program goes before deciding whether to offer the collection service at the Los Angeles and Boston marathons, said Lisa DeNeffe, a spokeswoman.
All of Nike's recent efforts, the company said, are aimed at figuring out how to set up a nationwide system in which consumers can return their used running shoes to retailers for recycling.
Keith Peters, a Nike spokesman, said the company expects to begin accepting used running shoes from its customers within a year.
Bill Peowski, a Hebron resident who has run in three Boston Marathons and now runs about 25 miles a week, wears out about three pairs of running shoes a year.
When they no longer are good for running, he wears them in the garden, but ultimately "you end up throwing them away," Peowski said.
"If we could find a use for them, that would be great," he said


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RBC Bearings Incorporated (ROLL) Short Interest Down 51.8% in December
RBC Bearings Incorporated (NASDAQ:ROLL) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest during the month of December. As of December 29th, there was short interest totalling 242,181 shares, a drop of 51.8% from the December 15th total of 502,618 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 69,877 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.5 days. Currently, 1.0% of the company’s shares are sold short.
In other news, VP Thomas C. Crainer sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.76, for a total value of $1,811,400.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Michael J. Hartnett sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.00, for a total value of $64,000.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 37,487 shares of company stock worth $4,632,657. Corporate insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.
Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wasatch Advisors Inc. raised its stake in RBC Bearings by 15.9% during the third quarter. Wasatch Advisors Inc. now owns 995,306 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $124,563,000 after buying an additional 136,604 shares during the last quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can raised its stake in RBC Bearings by 44.7% during the third quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can now owns 3,002 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $373,000 after buying an additional 928 shares during the last quarter. Davis R M Inc. raised its stake in RBC Bearings by 39.7% during the third quarter. Davis R M Inc. now owns 41,930 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,248,000 after buying an additional 11,915 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in RBC Bearings by 0.4% during the second quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 288,730 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,381,000 after buying an additional 1,116 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Royce & Associates LP raised its stake in RBC Bearings by 0.9% during the third quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 489,177 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $61,221,000 after buying an additional 4,200 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.89% of the company’s stock.
RBC Bearings (ROLL) opened at $130.70 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3,145.57, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.09 and a beta of 1.35. RBC Bearings has a one year low of $87.61 and a one year high of $139.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 4.68.
RBC Bearings (NASDAQ:ROLL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 3rd. The industrial products company reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the Zacks’ consensus estimate of $0.85 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $164.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $164.56 million. RBC Bearings had a net margin of 11.18% and a return on equity of 11.10%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.78 EPS. equities research analysts forecast that RBC Bearings will post 3.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.
COPYRIGHT VIOLATION WARNING: This piece was published by American Banking News and is owned by of American Banking News. If you are viewing this piece on another website, it was illegally copied and reposted in violation of United States and international copyright & trademark laws. The original version of this piece can be accessed at https://www.americanbankingnews.com/2018/01/14/rbc-bearings-incorporated-roll-short-interest-down-51-8-in-december.html.
About RBC Bearings
RBC Bearings Incorporated is an international manufacturer and marketer of engineered precision bearings and products, which are integral to the manufacture and operation of machines, aircraft and mechanical systems. The Company operates through four segments: Plain Bearings; Roller Bearings; Ball Bearings, and Engineered Products.
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Greece has drafted a bill banning the use of a range of single-use plastics, from takeaway coffee cups to cotton buds, ahead of an EU deadline in 2021, the government said on Tuesday.
Greeks, who are heavy coffee drinkers, annually require 350 million plastic cups and 2 billion plastic bottles, the environment ministry said. In the European Union, about 80% of the litter that ends in the sea, endangering marine life, is plastic.
The EU is to ban a range of single-use plastic items by 2….. Read More On: Cyprus Mail
The contents of this article including any associated images are © Cyprus Mail


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Staging Labs is excited to announce that our product Saferoot has been selected as one of the first Snaps for MetaMask. This will allow us to provide Saferoot's automated crypto protection directly within the MetaMask wallet.
For those unfamiliar, Snaps are mini extensions that can be added to MetaMask to provide additional functionality. By opening up its platform to developers, MetaMask is enabling a more collaborative, user-focused crypto ecosystem.
As an inaugural Snap, Saferoot will give MetaMask users extra security on top of the wallet's existing safeguards. Our Snap will monitor transactions, detect threats, and instantly back up assets if risks are detected.
We applaud MetaMask's efforts to decentralize key platforms through initiatives like Snaps. Their commitment to enabling safe, easy cryptocurrency access aligns with our mission at Staging Labs.
As MetaMask Snaps expands, we look forward to contributing to strong precedents around transparency and ethical practices. Our goal is to benefit the entire crypto community by prioritizing user security, privacy and compliance.
This launch furthers our mission of making crypto investing more intrinsically secure and accessible for all. We're excited to grow our partnership with MetaMask as we continue building Web3's trusted user protection layer.


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We set the record straight and take a look at the real benefits of the LED revolution.
The lighting industry is deliberately misrepresenting the energy performance of home and office lighting on a grand scale, according to an official document that surfaced this week.
Most firms, including Osram, Philips and General Electric, are knowingly selling bulbs that are 10% less bright than declared on the packet (lumens), according to a statement filed with the World Trade Organisation by the European Commission.
The European Commission plans to allow highly inefficient, poor quality office and street light technologies back onto the market, reversing bans that have been in place for years. Offices could reintroduce lighting that is 15% darker and breaches European light quality and comfort standards. Street lighting could go backwards too, saving money in the short-term but reducing light quality and locking public authorities to higher energy bills for years.
At VW, what you see is not what you get. The same is true with home appliances. Firms are deliberately overstating the performance of their products through a legal loophole that could be costing consumers as much as €2bn a year. Reforms to close the loophole have been frozen by European Commission chiefs nervous of VW-like headlines.
- Manufacturers deliberately overstating product performance
- Whistleblower: the problem is endemic in the lighting sector
- Loophole could be costing consumers €2bn a year in higher energy bills
- European Commission sitting on a silver bullet legal reform
- Electrolux criticises Commission


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Publication/Event date: 2012-04-17
Publication name: CBS Los Angeles
URL for more info: http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2012/04/17/la-city-council-moves-forward-on-banning-pet-sales/
Summary: LOS ANGELES (CBS) — The L.A. City Council voted Tuesday in favor of banning stores from selling dogs, cats and rabbits that are not rescues in an effort to curb the city’s animal euthanasia rates.
Eleven members of the council approved the motion, which will be drafted by the City Attorney’s Office into an ordinance banning pet sales. Councilman Bill Rosendahl cast the dissenting vote. Continue reading the article…
What: CAPS will kick-off the first in a series of protests against Puppy Town in Sarasota to draw awareness to the connection between pet shops and puppy mills. Almost all pet shops obtain dogs from puppy mills.
When: Sunday, April 15, 2012 from 1:00 to 3:00 pm ET
Where: Puppy Town 4045 S Tamiami Trail Sarasota, FL 34231
Why: Puppy Town sells dogs from puppy mills - commercial breeding facilities that mass-produce puppies for resale through pet shops and brokers. USDA licensed facilities are puppy mills.


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James Bradshaw said his family, in Westerham, Kent, were now tracking down websites selling UK-made clothing, or making garments at home themselves.
Mr Bradshaw said: "We've been able to buy most things, even electronics, and at cheaper prices than foreign-made products. But we've really struggled with clothing, I don't understand why the big retailers don't do more.
"There's the odd website I've found but my wife is now making her own clothes."
He added: "You can see that some chains are talking about bringing British-made garments back but you couldn't buy a full outfit. We haven't been to the high street for about seven months."
The Bradshaws hit the headlines earlier this year after their idea, initially posted on a blog, snowballed. A "British Family" fete takes place next month and is so far being supported by 40 companies.
The Daily Telegraph revealed last week John Lewis was "repatriating" part of its textile production from Europe to the UK, such as towels and sheets, but the department store chain insists it is finding it harder to source UK-made clothing.
Marks & Spencer, once synonymous with UK fashion, has been putting more investment back into sourcing British made clothing. The chain claims its "Best of British" range is made at 14 locations around the country, including Leicester, Carlisle and Manchester.
At the weekend it emerged that J Crew, a US fashion chain, would be charging British consumers 40 per cent more than in New York for everything from cashmere button-back sweaters to club blazers when they open in London this November.
Marc Gander, founder of the Consumer Action Group, said: "American companies seem to think that the British public are able to pay a lot more than US consumers. This seems very unfair."